New Revised Standard NRS
The Bible in Basic English BBE
1 Hear this word that I take up over you in lamentation, O house of Israel:
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Give ear to this word, my song of sorrow over you, O children of Israel.
2 Fallen, no more to rise, is maiden Israel; forsaken on her land, with no one to raise her up.
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The virgin of Israel has been made low, never again to be lifted up: she is stretched out by herself on her land; there is no one to put her on her feet again.
3 For thus says the Lord God: The city that marched out a thousand shall have a hundred left, and that which marched out a hundred shall have ten left.
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For these are the words of the Lord God: The town which was able to send out a thousand, will have only a hundred; and that which sent out a hundred, will have only ten, in Israel.
4 For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel: Seek me and live;
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For these are the words of the Lord to the children of Israel: Let your hearts be turned to me, so that you may have life:
5 but do not seek Bethel, and do not enter into Gilgal or cross over to Beer-sheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into exile, and Bethel shall come to nothing.
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Do not be looking for help to Beth-el, and do not go to Gilgal, or make your way to Beer-sheba: for Gilgal will certainly be taken prisoner, and Beth-el will come to nothing.
6 Seek the Lord and live, or he will break out against the house of Joseph like fire, and it will devour Bethel, with no one to quench it.
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Go to the Lord for help so that you may have life; for fear that he may come like fire bursting out in the family of Joseph, causing destruction, and there will be no one to put it out in Beth-el.
7 Ah, you that turn justice to wormwood, and bring righteousness to the ground!
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You who make the work of judging a bitter thing, crushing down righteousness to the earth;
8 The one who made the Pleiades and Orion, and turns deep darkness into the morning, and darkens the day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea, and pours them out on the surface of the earth, the Lord is his name,
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Go for help to him who makes Orion and the Pleiades, by whom the deep dark is turned into morning, who makes the day black with night; whose voice goes out to the waters of the sea, sending them out over the face of the earth: the Lord is his name;
9 who makes destruction flash out against the strong, so that destruction comes upon the fortress.
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Who sends sudden destruction on the strong, so that destruction comes on the walled town.
10 They hate the one who reproves in the gate, and they abhor the one who speaks the truth.
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They have hate for him who makes protest against evil in the public place, and he whose words are upright is disgusting to them.
11 Therefore because you trample on the poor and take from them levies of grain, you have built houses of hewn stone, but you shall not live in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink their wine.
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So because the poor man is crushed under your feet, and you take taxes from him of grain: you have made for yourselves houses of cut stone, but you will not take your rest in them; the fair vine-gardens planted by your hands will not give you wine.
12 For I know how many are your transgressions, and how great are your sins— you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe, and push aside the needy in the gate.
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For I have seen how your evil-doing is increased and how strong are your sins, you troublers of the upright, who take rewards and do wrong to the cause of the poor in the public place.
13 Therefore the prudent will keep silent in such a time; for it is an evil time.
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So the wise will say nothing in that time; for it is an evil time.
14 Seek good and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you, just as you have said.
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Go after good and not evil, so that life may be yours: and so the Lord, the God of armies, will be with you, as you say.
15 Hate evil and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.
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Be haters of evil and lovers of good, and let right be done in the public place: it may be that the Lord, the God of armies, will have mercy on the rest of Joseph.
16 Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the Lord: In all the squares there shall be wailing; and in all the streets they shall say, "Alas! alas!" They shall call the farmers to mourning, and those skilled in lamentation, to wailing;
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So these are the words of the Lord, the God of armies, the Lord: There will be weeping in all the open spaces; and in all the streets they will say, Sorrow! sorrow! and they will get in the farmer to the weeping, and the makers of sad songs to give cries of grief.
17 in all the vineyards there shall be wailing, for I will pass through the midst of you, says the Lord.
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In all the vine-gardens there will be cries of grief: for I will go through among you, says the Lord.
18 Alas for you who desire the day of the Lord! Why do you want the day of the Lord? It is darkness, not light;
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Sorrow to you who are looking for the day of the Lord! what is the day of the Lord to you? it is dark and not light.
19 as if someone fled from a lion, and was met by a bear; or went into the house and rested a hand against the wall, and was bitten by a snake.
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As if a man, running away from a lion, came face to face with a bear; or went into the house and put his hand on the wall and got a bite from a snake.
20 Is not the day of the Lord darkness, not light, and gloom with no brightness in it?
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Will not the day of the Lord be dark and not light? even very dark, with no light shining in it?
21 I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.
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Your feasts are disgusting to me, I will have nothing to do with them; I will take no delight in your holy meetings.
22 Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; and the offerings of well-being of your fatted animals I will not look upon.
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Even if you give me your burned offerings and your meal offerings, I will not take pleasure in them: I will have nothing to do with the peace-offerings of your fat beasts.
23 Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of your harps.
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Take away from me the noise of your songs; my ears are shut to the melody of your instruments.
24 But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
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But let the right go rolling on like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
25 Did you bring to me sacrifices and offerings the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
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Did you come to me with offerings of beasts and meal offerings in the waste land for forty years, O Israel?
26 You shall take up Sakkuth your king, and Kaiwan your star-god, your images, which you made for yourselves;
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Truly, you will take up Saccuth your king and Kaiwan your images, the star of your god, which you made for yourselves.
27 therefore I will take you into exile beyond Damascus, says the Lord, whose name is the God of hosts.
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And I will send you away as prisoners farther than Damascus, says the Lord, whose name is the God of armies.
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain.